Friends say Snochia Moseley, 26, had hit breaking point after a battle with mental illness when she began shooting at her colleagues on Thursday morning. The Rite Aid worker killed three and injured three more before shooting herself
Snochia Moseley, 26, was at breaking point when she killed three people and herself in a shooting at a Rite Aid warehouse on Thursday, friends say.
Moseley opened fire at her workplace at 9.06am, after arriving at the distribution facility in Enterprise Business Park. She shot outside the building, before continuing her rampage inside.
Friend Toni Coley, who has known the woman since high school, told the Baltimore Sun Moseley often felt alienated, but she ‘wasn’t a monster, wasn’t an angry person’.
‘I just believe this was emotional distress. If she did this, it was her last straw,’ she said.
Moseley injured three people and shot dead three others. Two of them died at the scene and one was taken to hospital where they succumbed to their injuries later in the day.
Her motive remains unclear and police say that while they are pursuing all strands of investigation, terrorism is not likely in this case.
Moseley had multiple outstanding tickets for registration violations and a lack of insurance, and just last week, the courts were asked for permission to take the outstanding fines to trial.
But tickets were not her only problems – Coley told the Baltimore Sun Moseley had come out to her family as transgender in December 2016 and wanted to begin hormone therapy.
At present, it is not known if she did commence hormone therapy, or if Moseley, known to friends as ‘Sno’, used male or female pronouns.
Coley and Moseley were intending to create a documentary on Moseley’s life before she died, based off a manuscript the Rite Aid worker had written.
Other friends paid tribute to her on social media, claiming she had been consumed by mental illness and had reached out for help multiple times before shooting at her colleagues.
One friend, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Sun he was at first appalled to hear about the shooting, but immediately felt heartbroken when he discovered who was behind it.
‘It’s catastrophic,’ he said. ‘She did a terrible thing, but I feel for her.
‘The first thing you think is, “This person is horrible,” because you have a bias. But knowing someone, I believe everyone is human. Everyone is going through something.’
Moseley opened fire using a .9mm Glock which she legally owned outside the business park at 9.06am then made her way inside where she continued shooting. She eventually shot herself then died in hospital. She is shown above in Facebook photographs she uploaded earlier this year
A woman reacts at the scene of the shooing on Thursday morning as police work nearby. Three people were killed and at least two others were injured by the female shooter, according to officials
There was an enormous police presence at the Rite Aid warehouse afterwards and for much of the afternoon as authorities worked to close off the crime scene and evacuate anyone still in the building
Ambulances and fire trucks at the scene of the shooting in Aberdeen, Maryland, on Thursday after the suspect was taken to hospital where she later died
Two women embrace after leaving the business park where the shooting happened on Thursday morning
Survivors said she was a ‘nice person’ who came to work in a bad mood, ‘wanting to pick a fight’.
She used a single handgun to carry out the attack. It was legally owned and registered to her.
According to witnesses, an injured person was seen running out of the warehouse as the shooting unfolded and collapsed in a nearby cemetery. Moseley’s vehicle is still at the scene and will be towed away soon.
At a press conference on Thursday, Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler said there were: ‘Seven people who have been shot including the shooter.
‘Three are suffering from injuries from which they are expected to survive. Three others are victims of our shooter who lost their lives.
She wanted to pick a fight and then she started shooting
Mike Carre, who works in a building nearby and helped give injured Rite Aid survivors first aid until ambulances arrived.
‘The fourth loss of life is the suspect. We are not prepared to release the victims’ names. Our suspect is a lone female, aged 26, who had a last known address in Baltimore County.
‘She has died in the hospital from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. She was armed with one handgun and several magazines.’
She was carrying a 9mm Glock handgun and was carrying two or three magazines, he said.
Mike Carre, who works at Zenith Global Logistics nearby, said Rite Aid employees came pouring out of the building, running for their lives, as the terror unfolded.
One person said she’d seen her friend get shot in the head.
Witnesses said Moseley was a ‘nice person’ who came to work in a bad mood ‘looking for a fight’
He told The Washington Post of the shooter: ‘Normally, she was a nice person, but she came in in a bad mood. She wanted to pick a fight.
‘And then she started shooting.’
The warehouse is at the intersection of Spesutia Road and Perryman Road.
Nearby are other businesses, a school, a church and an apartment complex.
They were all put in lockdown as the shooting unfolded.
Rite Aid confirmed that the shooting was in one of their buildings and said they learned about it from someone inside.
In a statement, the company said: ‘We are deeply saddened by the events that transpired this morning at the Liberty support facility, which is part of Rite Aid’s Perryman Distribution Center in Aberdeen, Md.
‘Local authorities have confirmed that there are multiple fatalities and casualties.
‘We are continuing to work closely with authorities as they conduct their investigation.
‘The facility has been closed and we are assessing when it will be reopened.’
The shooting took place inside this Rite Aid distribution facility in Aberdeen, Maryland. There are two components to it – a large, 1,000 worker warehouse and a smaller satellite office of around 30 people (left) where it is believed to have taken place
This is the business park where the incident unfolded. There are a number of warehouses and Rite Aid has two facilities in it – one which houses 30 people and another where around 1,000 work. It is a huge, 2,010 sq ft workplace
The business park is in Perryman which is 27 miles north east of Baltimore. While it was unfolding, workers inside sent terrifying messages to their relatives including Alexi Scharmann whose mother sent her these heartbreaking messages (right)
‘Grief counselors will be made available to our associates and will remain available as long as they are needed. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those involved in this tragic incident, as well as their loved ones.’
As the shooting unfolded, terrified workers text their loved ones to tell them there was a shooter in the building.
Rite Aid issued this statement on Thursday afternoon
Alexi Scharmann told local station WBLA-TV that her mother, who works in the Rite Aid building, sent her and her sibling a message to tell her she was hiding.
They read: ‘I love you both more than you will ever know. There is a shooter in the building. ‘I am hiding. I love you.
‘Be good and take care of daddy and the pets if something should happen,’ she said.
She had to wait another hour before learning that her mother was safe and had escaped.
Others appealed frantically for information on social media asking if anyone knew whether their loved ones were safe. Police later set up a staging area for victims’ relatives to gather in.
A Harford County Rescue Vehicle is pictured at the scene of the mass shooting at a Ride Aid warehouse on Thursday
Armed officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were on the scene along with local law enforcement and FBI agents
A team of tactical agents gather at the scene of the workplace shooting on Thursday morning in Aberdeen, Maryland
Armed police work at the scene of the shooting on Thursday morning
State troopers remained on the scene to direct traffic, which was severely affected by the incident, afterwards
An ATF officer walks around the business park with a sniffing dog. The park is home to several businesses, all of which were put in lockdown after the shooting
Roads were closed and trains which stopped nearby were also being halted.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said he is closely monitoring the horrific shooting.’
‘Our prayers are with all those impacted, including our first responders. The State stands ready to offer any support,’ he said on Twitter.
As the shooting was unfolding, workers in the neighboring offices and warehouses were put on lockdown.
‘There’s a lot of police activity and ambulances and fire engines,’ one said. ‘They have the whole area blocked off. We’ve not been able to get in and out.’
‘We have our business locked down, since we’re so close. There’s not any way to get out of the area,’ David Graf, who works for New German Performance, told WBAL-TV.
Multiple people were shot at the business park in Aberdeen, Maryland. Above, police at an apartment building nearby